First Corinthians | Victory Through Our Lord Jesus Christ

It's good to see you guys today. My name is Kyle.

If you're visiting today with thank you for being here.

If you have your Bible, you can open the First Corinthians

1 Corinthians 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15, First Corinthians 15.

We'll be there. This will be our final week in

First Corinthians 15. So over the past, I guess, few

weeks, we've been walking through what you might call this

glorious chapter. It's a glorious chapter because

it describes for us the resurrection and all that it,

all the benefits of it for us. And in this chapter, Paul's

shown us the necessity of Christ's resurrection.

He also has shown us the nature of our own resurrection and the

hope that flows from those truths.

But as he concludes the chapter, Paul lifts our eyes, if you

will, to final victory, the moment when death itself is

swallowed up forever. So this passage takes us from

the struggle of life, at which we'll talk more about as we go.

It takes us from the struggle of life to the certainty of victory

through Christ. And it'll be a good journey.

All right. So if you would, would you

please stand? Alan, you just said stand again.

First Corinthians 15, verses 50 through 58 will be our text this

1 Corinthians 15:50–58

morning. Paul writes in verse 50.

I tell you this, brothers, flesh and blood cannot inherit the

Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the

imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery.

We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a

moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpets.

For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised

imperishable, and we shall be changed.

For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and

this mortal body must put on immortality.

When the perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts

on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is

written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

Oh death, where is your victory? Oh death, where is your sting?

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord

Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers,

be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the

Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you

for your word. We thank you, Father, that you

have spoken to us by your Spirit through the pins of your chosen

men. And Father, what we have here

are the words of eternal life. What we have here are the words

for our sanctification, for our growth and godliness.

And so, Lord, help us not be hard hearted towards your word

this morning. Would you please soften our

hearts and our spirits to receive Your word with

Thanksgiving. It's a planet deep in our hearts

and spirits that it might. Bear fruits.

In this life and also in the life to come, as we'll see this

morning, my father, we are grateful to be gathered together

with one another, brother and sister in the Lord, to hear from

your word. And so help us to tune our

hearts and minds, our ears into it this morning.

It's in the name of Christ, I pray, Amen.

Amen. You may be seated.

There are few things, just a few things in life that feel as

final as death does. Every funeral we attend, every

grave we pass, every sickness that weakens the body, reminds

us that death seems to have the final word.

It seems to have the final word, but it seems to win in the end.

And if you think about it, death interrupts marriages, Death

separates families. Death silences voices that once

brought us great joy. And from the moment that sin

entered the world, death has had a perfect record.

Every man and woman born of Adam eventually returns to the dust,

but Paul closes this magnificent chapter by showing us that death

will not have the final word. Christ will and then.

The gospel doesn't simply offer us comfort in the face of death.

It declares victory over death. That's that's more than comfort

in the face of death. Now, it does bring comfort, but

there's a declaration of victory over death here in First

Corinthians 15 through Christ's resurrection.

What we see and what we have seen in this chapter is that the

curse is broken, the grave has been conquered, and the end of

our story is not decay, brothers and sisters, it's glory.

The end of your story is glory. When Paul writes these words,

he's not speculating, right? He's speaking as one who is

filled by the Spirit of God to pin these words for the Church

of Corinth first, but that believers throughout time and

history may be able to find great encouragement in these

truths. It's not speculating about what

might happen someday. He's not telling the

Corinthians, hey, this may take place, This might be what it

looks like. I don't really know, but this

may be something to look forward to.

No, he he writes with periods, not with question marks.

He writes with a pen of finality and not of indecision, right?

He's declaring wholesale truths for us, truths you can take to

the grave quite literally, and truths that will raise you one

day. He's proclaiming what will

happen for every believer united to Christ Jesus, and what began

with an empty tomb is going to end with a trumpet blast and the

transformation of all who belong to Christ.

This passage is the high points of First Corinthians 15, and I

would argue there's been a lot of high points.

But Paul's drawing us to a close in praise.

He's drawing our hearts upward. He's helping us to look forward

to a day where death will lose its sting, where death will hold

no victory. It's the high points.

It's the crescendo of resurrection hope.

But Paul doesn't end with some abstract theology, right?

I want you to understand this morning that what Paul writes

with his great clarity, he's not ending with some distant

prophecy that we can't understand.

No, he writes with clarity. He ends with a call to

endurance, a call to press on, a call to move forward.

He ends with a call to faithful ministry in the presence.

Whatever it is that God's called you to do, whatever it is that

whatever the lot is in life that God has granted you, Paul is

saying, because of these truths, you can endure.

You can press forward. What Paul shows us in this

passage today is that what we believe about the future shapes

how we Live Today. What we believe about the

future, what we believe about what's to come, shapes the way

that you organize your life today.

It shapes the way that you Live Today.

It shapes the way that you build patterns, rhythms, disciplines

in your life. It ought to shape those things.

What you believe about the future is either in one sense or

another, it's informing how you live right now.

So if you're wasting your life, if you see it as something

that's just to be used up and spent for your own good and your

own glory, then that shows. That reveals what you believe is

to come one day. However.

If you spend your life wisely, if you spend it with purpose and

intention, if you're a disciplined man or woman, if you

exercise self-control, if you live for the glory of the Lord

and not yourself, you're seeking to build His Kingdom, not your

own Kingdom, Then that also reveals what you believe about

the future. But what's?

To come. The.

Message of this passage. It's all quite simple, and yet

it's unshakeable. If you're taking notes, you can

write this down. Because Christ conquered death.

We can. Live with steadfast hope and

labor with enduring faith. Because Christ conquered death,

we can. Live with steadfast hope and

labor with enduring faith. That's the main point of the

passage this morning. As we study the text, we're

going to see 3 truths that carry us from despair to victory.

They carry. Us from uncertainty to

steadfastness. The first truth we're going to

see is that is the transfer. Sorry the transformation we

need. That God.

Will change our mortal bodies to fit us for an eternal Kingdom.

The second. Truth, we'll see, is the triumph

Christ secured. Through.

His death and resurrection. Jesus has swallowed up death

forever. And then the third truth that'll

be revealed is the tenacity that we're called to.

The tenacity we're called to. Because of Christ's victory, we

can stand firm and abound in His work.

So number. One the transformation we need

look again at verses 50 through 53.

I tell you this, brothers, flesh and blood cannot inherit the

Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the

imperishable. Behold, I.

Tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we

shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of

an eye, at the last trumpets. For the trumpet will sound, and

the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be

changed. For this.

Perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal

body must put on immortality. So, Paul?

Begins by reminding us in verse 50 that our present condition

that this is these are the things that he just talked about

in verses 35 through 49 in the sermon last week.

All right. So it's going to be a bit of of

summary here. He's.

Reminding us that our present condition is not suited for the

world to come. All right, I'll.

Tell you this, brothers, flesh and blood cannot inherit the

Kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the

imperishable. Of the.

Phrase flesh and blood here. Refers.

Not simply to physicality. It's not simply about your

literal flesh and blood. Rather, it's a reference.

To your. Mortal decaying condition.

Humanity, as it exists in Adam, is weakened by sin and subject

to death. The present order that we know

is fragile and fleeting. It cannot inherit the eternal,

incorruptible Kingdom of God. And so that means that our

problem is not that we are physical beings.

God created us physical beings. That's not a problem, that's a

blessing, right? Our problem is not that we are

physical beings, but that we are perishable beings.

That. Because of the sin of Adam, we

will perish. So.

Heaven, then, is not merely an improvement on this life.

Sometimes. We think of heaven as just like

all the best of this life, and that's all that'll exist.

Will. Exist in a place where we have

all the best things of this life.

No, it's so much more, Revelation promises us.

That it's a. Completely renewed creation.

That. Christ is making all things new

in the new heaven and new earth, and for us to share in that

glory, you too, we must also be made new.

The. Perishable must become

imperishable. The corruptible must become

incorruptible, and so Paul is exposing our deepest need here.

Our. Deepest need is transformation.

The. Bodies that you have now are not

suited for a fallen world. The bodies.

We will have must be suited for a redeemed world.

And what Paul is showing us is that that transformation will

not come by self efforts. The world spends a ton of money,

a ton of research, a ton of time in trying to convert the mortal

into being immortal, does it not?

I mean, we do all sorts of things to try to preserve.

Life. And yet here we are in the year

of our Lord 2025, and death still comes.

Death. Still reigns over us.

It's not going to. Come through self effort.

It's not going to. Come through gradual reform.

But what Paul's showing us is that the transformation will be

the work of God himself, that this is the only way it can

come. Through the work of our Lord, so

every. Wrinkle.

Every ache, every sign of aging, every diagnosis that reminds us

of our weakness. All of these are witnesses that

testify that we need something more than repair.

We need resurrection. And then in verse 51, Paul

discloses a divine secret. Behold.

I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we

shall all be changed. The word mystery, when you see

it in the New Testaments, it doesn't describe something

mysterious or puzzling. You may think of Ephesians 5

where Paul writes about marriage and talks about this mystery of

marriage, and all that transpires in it is a revelation

of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we see the.

Word mystery. It's not something we can't

figure out. Rather, it refers to a truth

that was once hidden in God's plan but now revealed in Christ

Jesus. It's.

The truth, right? It's not something.

We can't figure out. So here's the mystery that Paul

lays out. Not every believer is going to

die, but every believer will be changed.

Whether we sleep in the grave or we live to see the trumpet

sound, all of us must be transformed.

And Paul elaborates in verse 52 when he says in a moment, in the

twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet.

So the change will be instantaneous in a moment.

This comes. From a Greek word which means an

indivisible instant, an indivisible instance, the

twinkling of an eye captures the speed.

Right the. Blinking of your eye and the

last trumpet marks this climactic moments of Christ's

return. Now I want you to understand

when Christ returns it will be a public cosmic event.

It's. Often thought that it'll be a

secret escape. But the.

Truths of Scripture revealed that it'll be a royal

declaration that the King has come.

The dead. In Christ will rise

imperishable, and the living will be transformed to match

their glory. And then in verse 53, he

concludes this portion of our passage with this For this

imperishable body must put on the I'm sorry, for this

perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal

body must put on immortality. Do you see the word must there?

I don't have. To explain to you what must

means, right? Even children, you understand

when your parents say you must clean your room.

It's not a suggestion, all right?

It's a command. And here it's a promise must

indicates divine necessity. This is not an optional thing.

Brothers and sisters, the very bodies that now tire and decay

will put on, they must put on. And so they will put on

immortality. They'll put.

It on like clothing. Paul doesn't say we will discard

these bodies, but that they will be clothed in glory.

They'll be transformed from frailty to permanence, from

corruption to splendor. And so this is the final stage

of God's redemptive work. What?

Began with justification and continues in sanctification.

Will. Culminate in glorification.

The same power that raised Jesus from the dead will raise and

transform your mortal body. And so this ensures both

continuity and renewal, right? You will still be yourself, but

you will be completely freed from sin and decay.

You'll be conformed to Christ's glorious body.

I read it last week, but it's worth reading again.

Philippians 320 through 21. But our citizenship is in

heaven, and from it we await A Savior.

The. Lord.

Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like His

glorious body by the power that enables Him even to subject all

things to Himself. If you'd like to hear more about

that, you can come listen to Jo Loniger who preach this evening.

God's. Plan was never to save souls

only. God's.

Plan is to redeem whole person's body and spirit for eternal

fellowship with him. So what does that?

Mean for our lives. What are?

We supposed to do with these glorious truths, right?

I mean, that ought to be a question we ask.

Why is Paul teaching this? Well, this.

Truth changes how we live, and it changes how we suffer.

Every limitation you feel in your body, every doctor's

visits. Every.

Moment of pain or fatigue. Every loved 1 you lay in the

ground reminds you not just of your mortality, but of your

coming transformation, that these things shall not last.

And so I urge you, don't cling to what is passing away.

Fix your hope on what is imperishable for those that are

in Christ. If you're a believer, the worst

thing that can happen to your body is not your end, but your

beginning. The grave.

Is not your conclusion, rather it's your cocoon.

So take. Courage.

Take. Courage and weakness endure

trials with hope long for the day when, as Paul says, what is

mortal is swallowed up by life. We'll come to our next truth,

the triumph. Christ.

Secured. We see the triumph Christ

secured in verses 54 through 57, when the perishable puts on the

I'm sorry, Yeah, when the perishable puts on the

imperishable and the mortal puts on immortality, then she'll come

to pass the saying that is written, death is swallowed up

in victory. Oh, death.

Where is your victory? Oh death?

Where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and

the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives

us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, Paul? Is moving now from the promise

of transformation. To the.

Triumph that makes it possible in verse 54 he says when the

perishable puts on the imperishable and the mortal puts

on immortality then. You get to.

Make note of the word then then shall come to pass the saying

that is written, death is swallowed up in victory.

The word. Then marks the completion of

God's plan. When the transformation of verse

53 is completed, prophecy will have been fulfilled.

Paul is quoting prophecy here. He's quoting Isaiah 25, eight,

where the prophet foretold of a day when God would swallow up

death forever and he would wipe away tears from every face.

So in. Christ's resurrection.

That. Promise began right but at our

resurrection. That.

Promise will be finalized. Death.

Will not merely be restrained. Brothers and sisters, we're told

here that death will be consumed by our Lord Himself.

The. Enemy that has devoured every

generation will itself be devoured.

In verse 55, Paul takes the prophetic declaration and he

turns it into a victory taunt. I love it when my men of God and

the Scriptures begin to taunt evil.

Oh. Death, where is your victory?

Oh, death, where is your sting? Paul's mocking A defeated foe.

Yes, it's true that the the grave may still claim bodies.

But it can. No longer claim victory.

For. Those that are in Christ, death

has been defamed. It can.

Hurt us, and certainly it's a hurtful thing to lose a loved

one, is it not? It can cause great pain and

great grief. It can cause remorse.

It can cause you to reflect on what should have been, what

could have been. It'll cause you to.

Ask all sorts of questions. It'll cause you to doubt the

goodness of God. Like.

Death still stings, and so it can hurt us, but it cannot.

It cannot hold us. The grave.

Can sting, but it only stings for a moment.

Because. It no longer has the poison of

eternal separation from God. In verse 56, Paul explains why

the sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law.

So death. Sting, it's fatal wound is sin.

We die because we have sinned. Romans 623 For the wages of sin,

the payment of sin is death. Very good.

It's death, do you remember? The remainder of Romans 623 But

the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We die because we've sinned. Sin gains its condemning power

through the law, which rightly exposes our guilt.

We talk about the law. We're talking about the commands

of God. If you don't.

Have a full understanding of God's commands in the Old

Testament. You might think just merely of

the 10 commandments. What we?

Know about the law. What we see about the law, what

we can testify to be true, is that the law is holy.

It's holy. It's.

Holy because it's God's. It's wholly because it's God's

commands. It's utterly unlike ourselves.

It's. Utterly against everything that

we are. The law is also just now a just

law is a. Terrifying thing for an evil

doer, right? When the laws are upheld justly,

that is meant to terrify evil. Like even in the even in the

worldly sense of the government. Romans 13 reveals this.

But here we're talking about God's law being just if God's.

Law is just and God is holy, and we are unjust and unholy.

We're not going to fare very well in the final judgments, are

we? The other.

Thing you can say about God's law besides it being holy.

And just as you can say that it's good, it's good that you

should not murder, it's good that you should not steal, it's

good that you should not have other gods above God.

It's good that you should not or that you should keep the

Sabbath. It's good that you should not

commit adultery. It's good that you should not

dishonor your parents. It's good that.

You shouldn't covet or lie, bear false witness against your

neighbor, right? These are good things.

None of us look at that and say that's that's not good.

Those are evil laws. We.

Look at that. And we say these are good laws

and if we lived in a land where people actually kept those

things. This would be a.

Sweet place to live. Would you understand that a good

law is not good for those who are evil?

If our nature is corrupt, and it is, then good laws expose evil.

Good laws expose hearts that want their own good, that seek

their own desires. And so because we are sinners.

The law. Being holy, just and good

because we are sinners, the law now condemns rather than

comforts. The law holds up a perfect.

Standard that none of us can meet, and thus sin reigns and

death follows. Now to.

Remove death's sting. Sin.

Must be forgiven. To remove.

Sin's Power. The law.

'S demands must be satisfied. And this is precisely what Jesus

Christ did through his life. He fulfilled the law.

He was perfect. It's the only unjust death,

truly unjust death in the history of mankind.

But through His death He bore. Our curse.

He takes our sin on himself. Our sin is imputed to him so

that his righteousness might be imputed to us.

Because through his resurrection.

He breaks the chains of death over us.

And so now you can see what Paul in verse 57 sums it up in this

cry of praise. Now again, he's coming to the

end of chapter 15. So he's taking all these things

into account and he says, but thanks be to God, who gives us

the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

And to that we can all say Amen. You see the?

Verb gives. There is present tense.

Thanks be to God who gives us the victory.

God. Continues to give this victory

to all who are united to Christ. This isn't a past thing, this is

a continuational thing. God continues to give the

victory to all who are united to Christ by faith.

You see the? Victory is not earned.

The victory. Is not even achieved by us.

The. Victory is merely received.

It's received by faith. At the.

Cross Jesus takes the full weight of the lost curse.

He bears your sin, He satisfies divine justice, and he rises as

the first fruits of a new humanity.

The. Resurrection is not just proof

of his power, it is the declaration of His triumph.

And so because he lives, we can attest with the Scriptures that

sins debt is cancelled, death's dominion is ended.

Death may still strike, yes, but it cannot conquer any longer.

Its sword has been broken at the hilt by a risen Christ.

And so believe her. Listen to me, listen to Paul.

You no longer need to fear death.

You no. Longer need to fear death.

For those. That are outside of Christ.

Death. Remains a great terror.

And you have. Every right to fear death.

In fact, if you're not fearing death, that's a really foolish

place to stand. But for.

Those who are in Christ. Death.

Has become a doorway in the glory when you attend a

Christian funeral. You're not.

Witnessing defeat. You're.

Witnessing a moment between two victories, Christ's resurrection

behind us and ours ahead. Every grave of a believer.

Is a seed planted in hope. It's awaiting the great trumpet

call. And so do not despair as the

world despairs. Do not grieve as the world

grieves. Sing Paul's words over your

fears. Oh, death, where is your sting?

Let that confession. Be your.

Comfort and sorrow. Let that.

Confession be your courage and suffering.

The victory has been secured by our Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen. Thirdly.

We see the tenacity we're called to in verse 58.

The. Tenacity.

We're called to. Therefore.

My beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always

abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord

your labor is not in vain. Paul has.

Described the transformation we need.

He's. Described the triumph that

Christ has won. And now he ends this great

chapter with a call to weakness. No, he ends it with a call to

perseverance. He he's calling therefore.

My beloved brothers, be steadfast, be immovable, always

abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord

your labor is not in vain. He's calling us to perseverance.

The word. Therefore is key.

Paul. Is too high.

He's tying theology to life. These.

Things go together, right? The theology, the things you're

learning about what the Lord has accomplished and what that means

for you now means something for the way that you live.

It means you are to persevere. The resurrection isn't meant to

stay in the clouds of speculation, brothers and

sisters. It's called down from heaven,

and it's meant to land in the soil of obedience.

Because. Christ has secured a victory.

We can live confidently, not fearfully.

We can live steadfastly, not sporadically.

And so Paul first calls the Corinthians to be steadfast.

I'm sure. You have an understanding of the

word steadfast, but in case you don't, it means firm, it means

settled. It means I like this one

anchored. It means anchored.

All of those things mean not easily shaken, not easily

shaken. It speaks of an inner stability

that's rooted in the gospel. Be steadfast in your

convictions, Be steadfast in your faith, be steadfast in your

love for Christ. The winds of the world will blow

like crazy, and they'll seek to toss you to and fro, but the

resurrection fixes your anchor deep.

And so then he adds immovable. Paul's.

Piling on words here, but they're not meaningless words.

He's wanting to make a clear point.

Be steadfast, be immovable. So if.

Steadfast describes the hearts. The posture of our hearts.

Then immovable describes the posture of our spirits.

It's the posture of our life. It's a refusal to drift.

It's a. Refusal to be pushed off course.

Right. Don't be moved by opposition.

Don't be moved by weariness. Don't be moved by the lure of

worldly ease. No, the empty tomb of Christ

assures that the gospel you labor for is not in vain.

You're laboring for a gospel of victory, brothers and sisters.

And so Paul urges next always abounding in the work of the

Lord. Be steadfast, be immovable.

Be always abounding in the work of the Lord.

Abounding means overflowing. It's really fun.

When your children start to want to do things on their own.

Right. Show a little.

Independence. It's one of the things though,

they're happy to learn how to do, and it's not really that

they want to be taught at all. It's just that they want to take

the bull by the horns and do it themselves.

And one of those things is they'll go get a cup from the

pantry. We'll grab.

A massive jug of sweet tea. Because this is the South,

right? We'll set.

The cup on the counter and they'll begin to pour.

With no. Indication that they have any

idea that that cup is being filled until the cup's

overflowing and it's like Oh my gosh all.

Right, the Cup. Is abounding.

It's overflowing. Overflowing means not doing the

bare minimum. You take that small little bit

of sweet tea and get it out of my face, right?

Want a cup that's overflowing, abounding, not doing the bare

minimum? You may ask, Well, what is the

work of the Lord? How am?

I to abound in the work of the Lord.

What am I? To abound in.

Well. The work of the Lord.

When Paul writes that it's an all-encompassing term, it

encompasses everything that's done in His name.

Everything. That's done in his name, so.

It could be. Evangelism could be telling

unbelievers about the gospel, imploring them to believe it's.

Could be. Discipleship.

Or you're taking someone who's professed faith in Christ and

you're teaching them how to obey the commands of the Lord.

Could be service, finding ways to serve your church, finding

ways to serve your Co workers or your neighbors.

Could be mercy, right? Someone's.

In need and so you show mercy to them in some way.

Could be. Prayer.

All right, I'm going to write this down.

I'm going to remember that so and so asked me to pray for them

and write it down. I'm going to pray for them.

Could be parenting. Lord knows it's parenting, all

right. Could be marriage always

abounding in the work of the Lord in marriage.

Learning to be a godly husband. Learning to be a godly wife.

Learning to put Christ first in all things.

Working. Through difficulties and strife

and struggle to glorify the Lord and to leave a legacy for your

children and grandchildren. Could be.

Hospitality, thanking God for the home you have, not the home

you wish you have, and opening the doors of that home.

Setting. Extra seats around the table

inviting people in. And it's so much more than those

things. It's not even scratching the

surface of the things that the Lord's likely called you to do

in your life. What Paul wants the believers in

Corinth to understand, and what the Spirit of God wants you and

I to understand, is that the resurrection doesn't make us

idle dreamers, but we're just always dreaming up some good

work we could do and never actually doing a thing.

That's the way of the sluggard. You see the sluggard in

Proverbs. He lays in his bed, He tosses

and he turns. He says things like this cup is

too heavy to bring to my mouth. He dreams of going outside, and

yet he sees a line in the streets.

And so he returns to his house. We're not called to be.

Idle dreamers. We're called to be diligent

workers, men and women of God who apply ourselves with

diligence. With.

Perseverance with steadfastness, being immovable, always

abounding in the work. Of our Lord the more.

Certain we are of the end. This is what Paul believes.

That's what you and I need to believe, that the more certain

we are of the end of all things, the more active we become in the

Presence. If your.

Theology of death. Leads.

You to never do anything. It's a bad theology.

But if your. Theology of death and the

resurrection leads you to become immovable, to be steadfast and

always abounding the word of the Lord.

Then it's a good theology. Finally, Paul gives the reason

for such perseverance knowing. If you're not opposed to writing

in your Bible, you may underline the Word knowing there, knowing

that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

That word. Knowing is so crucial.

Knowing implies that it is not wishful thinking.

I hope that this is good. I have.

Dreams about it being good, you know that it's good, you know?

That your labor. Is not in vain.

And so you labor for the Lord, and all things you have a

settled confidence. I know this.

Paul So. Believes in the resurrection,

that he's encouraging the Corinthians in this.

Because. Of the resurrection.

Every act of faithfulness matters to God.

Every act of faithfulness matters for eternity.

Every act of faithfulness is meaningful.

It's not meaningless. Nothing done for Christ is

wasted. Maybe you don't.

Get the outcome you want. So what?

It's not wasted. Nothing done for Christ is

forgotten. Nothing done for Christ is even

fruitless when you serve quietly, when you persevere

through discouragement, when you give yourself to the church and

to your family and to your community in the name of Christ.

None of it is in vain, not one bit of it.

It's all meaningful. It all matters for eternity.

The resurrection of Jesus not only secures our future, it

sanctifies our presence. It gives eternal significance to

temporary work. Well, I'm only.

Here for 60 or 7080 years, maybe by reason of strength.

What can I? Do that matters for eternity?

What? Can't you do?

The. Lord has given you a divine

imperative here to go and be immovable, be steadfast, always

abounding in the work of the Lord.

These things matter, So what can't you do?

That's a better question. What's God called you to do it?

Do it with. Glad hearts do it with joy.

Do it. Knowing that those things that

work for the Lord is not in vain.

Brothers and sisters, this is what separates Christian

perseverance from worldly ambition.

The Worldly. Ambitious will do great things.

They will you go look at Michael.

Jordan's career and say man, he was great.

He's worldly. Ambitious.

It's. Admirable.

It's inspiring even in some ways.

Notice I didn't say LeBron James.

OK? It's the only Amen you've given

all morning, all right. But this?

Is what separates Christian perseverance from worldly

ambition. Guys like.

Jordan and even LeBron, if you hold him that high, labor not to

build or labor to build their own legacy.

They labor to be the GOAT. But we.

Labor not to build our legacy. No, it's not about our legacy.

What? When?

I encourage you to love your wife and your children so that

you leave a great legacy. I'm not talking about your

legacy. I'll talk about a.

Legacy that honors the Lord. A legacy where children grow up

in a home where Christ is praised.

Christ. Is magnified Christ is

glorified. And so they go on to marry

someone who's going to help them magnify the Lord, and their

children are going to magnify the Lord, and they'll go on to

marry people who will magnify the Lord.

You see what I'm saying? That's the legacy.

The legacy is how high can we exalt Christ?

How great. Can we make his name not our

name? How many of you remember?

Maybe some of you do. All right, but I'm going to

throw this out there. How many remember the names of

your great, great grandparents? Great, great.

All right, there we go. It's a couple of you who've done

some sort of ancestry work. Or you had.

It passed down. The point is, is after a couple

of generations, your name's typically forgotten.

So why labor? So hard to build your own glory,

only to have it pass away as it ought to labor to build the

glory of the one who's never passing away.

Labor to. Build the glory of the one who

will always be exalted, who will always be magnified and

glorified in the heavens and the earth, and one day every knee

will bow and every tongue will confess that Christ is Lord.

That's worth giving. Our life to that's a legacy

worth leaving. We labor not to build our own

legacy. We labor to honor our risen

Lord, whose Kingdom will not, cannot fail.

So, Paul? Is telling believers here stay

steady. Be.

Unmoved. Keep laboring.

Don't lose hearts when ministry feels unnoticed or exhausting.

Don't lose heart when your life feels unnoticed or exhausting.

Don't give up when obedience is costly.

Be unmoved. Keep laboring.

Stay steady. Christ's victory guarantees that

your labor will echo in eternity.

If death itself cannot make your work vain, then no hardship can

make it vain either. The.

Resurrection doesn't call us to retreat and to hide in holy

huddles or holes. No the.

Resurrection calls us to abound in every good work because

Christ is victorious. Your steadfast faith and your

faithful labor will one day share in Christ's glory.

So, Paul? Began this chapter with the

Gospel. That Christ.

Died for our sins accord in accordance with the Scriptures

that he was buried and that he was raised on the third day in

accordance with the Scriptures. And he ends by showing us what

the gospel produces. Transformation, triumph,

tenacity. The resurrection is not merely

something we affirm. It's not a true.

It's not simply a truth we affirm.

The. Resurrection is something we

live by. It's a.

Truth that transforms us. It means that the worst enemy

has been defeated. That the.

Greatest fear in our life has been silenced and that the

surest hope has been secured. And so for the believer.

For the one. Who has set his affections on

Christ? This is.

Your anchor, death will not touch you forever, meaning death

cannot hold you. The grave may take your body for

a time, but Christ has already claimed your soul for eternity.

Therefore, stand firm in the faith.

Be immovable when trials come. Don't grow weary in the Lord's

work because none of it, none of it, none of it, none of it is

wasted. Every.

Prayer that you offer, every act of service, every tear shed, and

faith will be gathered and rewarded when the trumpet

sounds. And so you may not see the fruit

of it now, but your risen Lord sees.

Your risen Lord sees all of it. He remembers every moment of

your life, and so he will one day crown your labor with glory.

So believer. Lift your eyes above the decay

of this world. And fix.

Them on your victorious savior. Let his.

Resurrection make you courageous in the face of opposition.

Let His resurrection make you patient in the midst of

hardship. Let His resurrection make you

hopeful even at the edge of the grave.

Live and labor as someone who knows how the story ends,

because you do. You do.

Know. But if you're.

Here today, and you're without Christ.

If you. Remain outside of him.

This. Victory is not yours.

Not yet the same. Death that has lost its thing

for the believer still holds its venom for the unbeliever apart

from Christ. Death is not gain, it's

judgement. You will.

Stand before a holy God, whose law you have broken more than

once, and whose justice you will not escape, and yet the same

God. In Ephesians. 2 Paul says the

same God with great love has sent his Son to bear your sin.

He sent his own son to fulfill his law.

He sent his own son to rise again to give you life.

The victory that Paul is celebrating here can be yours,

but only by faith in the risen Jesus Christ.

So I. Urge you to come to him today.

I urge you to turn. From your sin to trust in a

Savior who died and rose for you.

The grave. No longer has to be your end.

The sting of sin no longer has to define your life.

Christ. Is offering you this day

forgiveness. He's offering you peace and he's

offering you offering you the promise of resurrection life.

So please. Do not leave today still

clinging to what's perishable. Still.

Hoping that you'll be the first one to prove God wrong.

Come and take hold of what is imperishable.

Take hold of the eternal life that is found only in Jesus

Christ. You see, this resurrection hope

is not just a future hope. It's a present.

Call. It's a.

Summons for everyone to come to Christ.

Because Christ lives. You can live differently today.

You can live with new life, with a new heart, with a new spirits.

And one day, when the trumpet sounds, all who are in him will

rise victorious, never to die again.

And to tell that day, brothers and sisters stand firm.

Stay. Faithful abound in the work of

Christ. For your.

Risen Lord is worthy of all your steadfastness.

He's worthy of all your service. He's worthy of all your song.

And remember, because Christ conquered death, we can live

with steadfast hope and labor, with enduring faith.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you

for the truths First Corinthians 15.

I recognize that I am unable, incapable even, of adequately

giving you the glory you so deserve in these truths in this

chapter. But I'm.

Grateful for it I'm. Grateful.

For these truths, it's my hope. That all.

Who have heard them will believe them, will trust that they're

true, and that they'll live lives for your glory, for your

name's sake, as they too become immovable and steadfast, as they

too abound in every good work that you have granted.

And so, Lord, as we come to the end of this chapter, would you

examine our hearts by your spirits?

Would you? Purge us of anything that is

unclean in US. Purge us of anything that is

false within us. Show us, Lord.

Where we have so doubted the resurrection.

That we've. Tried to make ourselves

immortal, or we've acted as though we are immortal already

and Lord would you grant us a. Heart of.

Confession grant us a heart of faith.

Grant us a heart of praise this morning.

Lord. If there's anyone in here who

doesn't know you, who's not yet set their faith on you, their

hope on you, who's not yet believed in their heart and

confessed with their mouth that Christ is Lord.

Or I. Ask you to save them by your

spirit, that you would draw them to new life, that they would

believe in their heart and confess with their mouth that

Christ is Lord, that He rose from the dead.

Grant them repentance and faith, Father.

Let me give you a. Moment there in your seat to

pray and to seek the Lord. However.

It is that the Spirit's leading you in this moment.

Heavenly. Father, we thank you for your

saving grace. We thank you for your marvelous

mercy. Which we've.

Received in Jesus Christ our Lord, Help us, Lord, to be

obedient. Help us to see that we are

merely branches attached to the vine and not vines ourselves.

Lord, help us to walk in obedience as those who love

Christ, who want to honour Him, bring glory to His name.

It's in the name of Christ I pray.

Amen.